Question:
My name is Amy Aiello and I want to know if you have any ideas for a
seventh grade science fair. Please answer ASAP.
Thanks!
Amy.
Replies:
I think that it would be a great idea to do a science
fair project concerning the POTATO - 1995 is a special
year for the potato - 150 years ago one million persons
died in Ireland alone because the potato crop was entirely
killed by the fungus P-Infestans. This fungus is so deadly
that entire crops can be wiped out over night - the Irish at
the time ate only potatoes and as a result there was no food
for them and the could not bring enough food in soon enough.
One million is a lot of people! Another one million left the country
and came to the United States where they changed our country-
the many Irish who came helped build our cities and railways
among other things.
Today there is a new form of the fungus that killed all the
potatoes in the 1840s in Ireland spreading around the
world and in the United States. It is more difficult to kill.
It is presently found throughout the United States and kills many
crops each year and it is getting worse.
Did you know that the potato receives more chemicals than any
other crop? Did you know that although people say eating potato
skins is good for you that the potato skin is the hardest to clean
of chemicals than any other vegetable skin?
So there are many aspects of the potato which could
be the focus of a project.
You could study the fungus P-Infestans and contact scientists
working on it-check recent articles in periodicals-perhaps
you could demonstrate its properties or work on a cure.
You might work on ways of washing the potato which would
remove chemicals from the skin to make it healthier to eat.
You could study the way the potato may be contributing to a famine
in reverse in the United states-instead of too few potatoes-
are we eating too many?-are we eating them in the wrong
ways-with too much fat oil etc...you could suggest ways
for better eating /cooking habits.
Perhaps you could suggest alternative foods which would
replace the nutrition and texture and taste of potatoes
so that if we lost the potato crop we could find a replacement
which tasted about the same-could there be an artificial potato?
You could study Irish /American eating habits-do they still eat
lots of potatoes?
So I hope that I have give you some Ideas-should you choose
a topic which relates to the Irish potato famine in any way
please let me know. This year I am coordinating a Potato Famine
Commemoration called the worldwide Potato Abstinence. I will list
any event related to the famine which takes place on or about 9/9/95
a date which commemorates the first mention of the famine in the Irish
Irish press. We are asking that participants give up potatoes for the
day and collect potatoes to feed the hungry - let me know
if you wish to do something along these lines related
to your science fair project and I will list it in a directory
of events and help let people know what you will be doing.
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